The Lovebirds (2020)

Streaming Service: Netflix

Movie Name/Year: The Lovebirds (2020)

Genre: Action, Comedy, Crime

Length: 86 minutes

Rating: R

Production/Distribution: Quinn’s House, 3 Arts Entertainment, Media Rights Capital (MRC), Netflix, Central Partnership

Director: Michael Showalter

Writer: Aaron Abrams, Brendan Gall, Martin Gero

Actors: Issa Rae, Kumail Nanjiani, Paul Sparks, Anna Camp, Nicholas X. Parsons, Kyle Bornheimer, Barry Rothbart, Catherine Cohen, Andrene Ward-Hammond

Blurb from IMDb: A couple (Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani) experiences a defining moment in their relationship when they are unintentionally embroiled in a murder mystery.

Selina’s Point of View:

The more I see of Kumail Nanjiani (The Big Sick, Stuber, Duck Butter), the more I find I enjoy his work.

Now, he didn’t have a hand in writing The Lovebirds, but his comedic timing, and the way he leans into his innate nerd-like awkwardness, is intensely endearing. He also works off of Issa Rae’s (The Photograph, Little, Insecure) quirky outgoingness extremely well. It’s a classic chemistry that I’ve come to enjoy.

Those two, as the main characters, really make this film a success. They elevate an already great script to much more than it could have been.

I will admit that there were some overly-cringey scenes, but I was able to power through them to get back to the kind of comedy I enjoy.

The first couple of scenes are hilarious. I may not remember the context of them as time goes by, but I’ll remember how much I laughed during it.

There are a few twists at the end that really set The Lovebirds apart for me. If nothing else, I will remember those for years to come.

The thing is, most of this story works because the world is the way it is. We expect some really awful things of our society and because that’s our baseline, the plot for this film makes sense. It’s a bit sad when you think about it.

I would recommend this movie to most people looking for an action comedy to watch. It is pretty on the nose with certain events transpiring right now, though, so it might not be the best to use as something to get your mind off of things.

Cat’s Point of View:

I was really excited when this Paramount release went straight to Netflix rather than getting thrown into the ‘wait and see’ limbo that a lot of movies have fallen into. I haven’t really been in the mood for romance movies lately, but a rom-com that’s heavier on the comedy and leaning towards action? Count me in!

What I wasn’t anticipating, however, was that watching this film through the lens of current events actually turned the movie into a quasi-thriller. I found myself scared for the main characters. Had the timing of the release not been so on-the-nose, I can’t say that sensation wouldn’t have been present – but I may not have experienced it quite so viscerally.

The levity was enough to keep my perspective grounded in the comedy-of-errors story, but I have to wonder all the same if this wasn’t a subtle statement-piece as well. If the main characters had reason to trust ‘the system,’ there wouldn’t have been a story, after all.

Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani were perfect for these roles. I believed in their chemistry and the rapid-fire argumentative banter between their characters. It reminded me of some of the back-and-forths that my husband and I get into occasionally.

Honestly, my luck is so crazy that I could see myself getting into a similar wrong place at the wrong time cascade of craziness. I have a few friends that I could almost guarantee that similar insanity could happen to. That did add an extra level of near-hilarity to the film.

I would definitely encourage everyone to give The Lovebirds a watch and see where your personal perspective takes you with the tale.

Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score – 66%

Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score – 51%

Metascore – 58/100

Metacritic User Score – 4.9/10

IMDB Score – 6.0/10

CinemaScore – None

Trust the Dice: Selina’s Rating – 4/5

Trust the Dice: Cat’s Rating – 4/5

P.S.: We won’t be publishing any full articles on the protests going around right now, mainly because we don’t want to profit off of anyone’s pain. That said, Trust the Dice believes that Black Lives Matter and that change is desperately needed. We hope that the protestors will be successful in their fight for justice, freedom, and reform. Be safe out there.

Movie Trailer: